NEWBERRY, S.C. — Newberry County Sheriff Lee Foster says he has tested positive for the coronavirus.
Foster announced that he and his wife had the virus on his Facebook page Monday afternoon. He said he has a low-grade fever but also did not feel good in other ways.
"I feel like a piece of meat Rocky Balboa beat in the freezer," he said.
He said he had tested negative last Tuesday but began feeling bad on Thursday. He tested positive on Sunday.
Although some first responders around the state have received the vaccine, he said but he said he had not been allowed to yet. "I guess I am getting the natural vaccination,' he said. "I pray we survive."
Foster has been the sheriff of Newberry County for 32 years, first taking office in January of 1989. The South Carolina Sheriff's Association told the Newberry Observer last year that as of January of 2021 he would be the longest service active sheriff in the state.
He's not the first Midlands sheriff to test positive. Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott announced last month that he had the illness. He has since recovered and is set to be sworn in for another term on Tuesday.
Here is Foster's full statement:
It was bound to happen because of my lifestyle. I tested positive yesterday. Carol tested positive today. Our symptoms are relatively mild at present. As for me, I have a low grade temperature. The worst thing is I feel like that piece of meat Rocky Balboa beat in the freezer. So I am working from home, literally. Although not advisable, I have had a couple of people stop by the house to conduct business, albeit through the storm door. This is a mystical virus. I tested negative on Tuesday and got to feeling poorly Thursday night. I just could not imagine being positive on Sunday; especially after testing negative earlier, taking precautions like walking around smelling like hand sanitizer and wearing a pretty good mask. Because I am in so many crowds and conducting business daily, I was patiently awaiting my turn to get the vaccine. Others in my profession had gotten it but we have not been allowed. I guess I am getting the natural vaccination. I pray we survive.
